Gov. Little and First Lady to Travel to Europe on Diplomatic Mission

Gov. Brad Little and Idaho’s First Lady Teresa Little will be leaving on Saturday for a six-day diplomatic trip to Europe.

The overseas trip, the governor announced in a news release on Tuesday, is in an effort to promote positive economic relations between Idaho and the Basque Country, the Netherlands and Ireland.

Other state officials will join the first couple, including Idaho Department of Commerce Director Tom Kealey and Idaho State Department of Agriculture Director Celia Gould and their staff.

According to the news release, highlights of the trip will include:

Basque Country

• Meetings with the Premier of the Historic Foral Territory of Bizkaia and Cabinet officials, Mayor of Gernika, members of Bizkaian Parliament, and the Basque Autonomous Community Government with the objectives of encouraging trade relationships and investments and strengthening the long-standing friendship and cultural connections between Idaho and the Basque Country
• New actions to increase cross promotion of tourism between Idaho and Bizkaia
• Promoting collaboration between Idaho and Basque energy companies

Amsterdam, Netherlands

• Meeting with leaders at cold storage company NewCold to discuss its investment in Idaho
• Meeting with leaders at Tolsma-Grisnich, a company that develops storage and processing solutions for agricultural products, to discuss business opportunities in Idaho

Ireland

• Meeting with leaders and employees at Glanbia, Idaho’s largest dairy processor headquartered in Kilkenny, Ireland, to discuss business in Idaho
• Roundtable with Irish business leaders to discuss Idaho investment opportunities

Little said he will keep Idahoans updated on the trip by posting photos to social media.